MTNA is a member of a consortium of music and legal organizations including the Music Publishers' Association of the United States, NAfME: The National Association for Music Education, National Association of Music Merchants, National Association of Schools of Music, ASCAP Foundation, Copyright Society of the USA, National School Boards Association, U.S. Register of Copyrights and the American Bar Association, which has developed a comprehensive website devoted to all aspects of music copyright. This resource, entitled The United States Copyright Law, A Guide for Music Educators, provides information on the reproduction, recording, distribution and performance of music and the guidelines that govern these actions. In addition, forms to arrange music and obtain rights to reprint music are available for download. MTNA encourages its members to consult this digital document for answers to questions regarding music copyright issues. Click Here to access this website. For more a more extensive resource, please consult the Music Publishers' Association website.

National Music Council Copyright Curriculum

The National Music Council and Music Publishers' Association have created an Emmy Award-winning program to teach young students the consequences of disrespecting the rights of creators, and how activity such as appropriating the work of others without permission negatively impacts upon creators and stifles creativity in general.

The lesson plan, award-winning video and educational extension activities are available via a free website at www.IMadeIt.org.

Copyright FAQs

Have a question regarding copyright laws as they apply to music teaching? For the convenience of MTNA members, a short summary of the most important elements of copyright law pertaining to the music teacher is provided by MTNA's general counsel.